lewis Hamilton got the victory he needed to keep his Formula One championship hopes alive. Now he needs more, and he needs Mercedes teammate and rival Nico Rosberg to make a mistake or have a bad race.
Hamilton won his fourth US Grand Prix in five years on Sunday, bolting from pole position and cruising to an easy victory that cut Rosberg's lead to 26 points with three races left.
Victories won't be enough for the two-time defending champion to keep his title. Rosberg still holds a relatively comfortable lead heading to next week's race in Mexico City where he won last year. Two seconds and a third in the final three races will be enough for Rosberg to earn his first season title.
Hamilton effectively won the race — and Rosberg lost it — on the first turn.
He finally got the jump he needed with a burst off the line he'd been missing.
Hamilton bolted into the 110-foot, elevated left turn that whiplashes the cars back downhill. He was first to the corner, held position and was off and running. Rosberg was pushed into third when Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo cut under his inside and edged him out at the top of the turn.
Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel finished fourth. The Haas F1 team's Romain Grosjean finished 10th, earning the rookie American-led team a point in its debut home race.
Perez finishes 8th
Sergio Perez drove a fine race to finish eighth and secure four points for Force India even as his teammate Nico Hulkenberg retired early following a crash in the opening lap. Starting 11th from the grid, Perez jumped up three places to finish inside top 10 and consolidate Force India's fourth position in the Constructor's standings with 138 points.